Bakken Rig Count Decreases to 163

January 20, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

The Bakken-Three Forks rig count decreased sharply over the past month, ending last week with a total of 163 rigs across our coverage area. This represents a drop of seven from last week and a startling 17 from only one month ago, according to the weekly report from Baker Hughes.

WTI crude prices have decreased by ~$9.59 since December 19th, trading at $55.99/bbl on Monday morning. As oil prices continue to drop, reports of deeper budget cuts and layoffs are now daily news.

Related: Energy Giants Announce Layoffs

The Bakken isn’t the only region to see a decline. The U.S. rig count decreased to 1,676 rigs running by the end of last week with a total of 310 rigs targeting natural gas (down 28 from December) and 1,366 targeting oil in the U.S. (down 170 since December). 165 rigs are running in the Williston Basin across MT, ND, and SD. 156 are in ND alone.

Bakken Drilling by County

Activity in the Bakken continues to be dominated by horizontal drilling:

152 rigs are drilling horizontal wells
8 rigs are drilling directional wells
3 rigs are drilling vertical wells

What is the Rig Count?

The Bakken Shale Rig Count is an index of the total number of oil & gas drilling rigs running across Montana and North Dakota. The rigs referred to in this article are for ALL drilling reported by Baker Hughes and not solely wells targeting the Bakken formation. All land rigs and onshore rig data shown here are based upon industry estimates provided by the Baker Hughes Rig Count.

Bakken Shale Rig Count Decreases by Seven to 180

December 22, 2014 Kirk Eggleston

The Bakken-Three Forks rig count decreased by seven t0 180 rigs running across our coverage area by the end of last week. The NDIC notes 178 rigs are active in North Dakota, but around 13 of those are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

In recent Bakken news, as the free-fall in crude prices continues, major Bakken operators are expressing their caution by slashing their budgets for 2015.

Marathon Oil is the latest giant to announce that its projected budget will curb exploration spending by a whopping 20% for 2015. Though the company still forecasts spending in upwards of $4.4 billion, the decrease is another sign that the spiraling oil prices are casting a dark shadow over the incredible growth that is taking place in the shale regions.

The U.S. rig count decreased by 18 to 1,875 rigs running by the end of last week. A total of 338 rigs were targeting natural gas (down 8 from the previous week) and 1,536 were targeting oil in the U.S. (ten less than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.). 181rigs are running in the Williston Basin across MT, ND, and SD. 172 are in ND alone.

Not all rigs counted in our census are drilling for the Bakken, but it's close. The NDIC estimates 95% or more of activity in this region targets the Bakken and Three Forks formations.

Note: The NDIC reports 178 rigs are active in North Dakota. That figure is three less than Baker Hughes reports in the Bakken area, and six more than the company reports in North Dakota. On any given week, a certain number of rigs are in route to the next well location or idle waiting to drill the next well. The NDIC notes that around 13 rigs are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

Bakken Oil & Gas Rigs

The number of oil rigs decreased by seven to 179 rigs running by the end of the week . WTI oil prices decreased by ~$2.00 from the previous week, trading at $55.99/bbl on Monday morning. Williston Basin Sweet crude traded at $40.19/bbl on December 19th. The WTI-Brent opened up a bit, settling at just under $5 by the end of last week.

One natural gas rig was recorded in the region. Natural gas futures (Henry Hub) were trading at $3.14/mmbtu by the end of last week. A little more than 10% of the production stream from the Bakken and Three Forks is attributable to natural gas and roughly half of that is NGLs.

McKenzie County continues to lead development with 67 rigs running. Mountrail, Williams and Dunn counties are the only other counties with more than 26 rigs running each. View the full list below under the Bakken Drilling by County section.

Activity is dominated by horizontal drilling:

167 rigs are drilling horizontal wells
10 rigs are drilling directional wells
3 rigs are drilling vertical wells

Bakken Oil & Gas News

Be sure to visit our Bakken Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates or sign up for alerts - Daily or Weekly Email Alerts

Bakken Drilling by County

What is the Rig Count?

Bakken Shale Rig Count Decreases by One to 187

December 15, 2014 Kirk Eggleston

The Bakken-Three Forks rig count decreased by one t0 187 rigs running across our coverage area by the end of last week. The NDIC notes 181 rigs are active in North Dakota, but around 12 of those are in the process of moving in and rigging up. In recent Bakken news, a new study led by researchers from The University of Texas hopes to provide clues to better understand the correlation between well technology and methane emissions during the natural gas production process.

The findings, published December 9th in Environmental Science & Technology, indicate that the overwhelming majority of methane emissions are from two types of wells; those that use pneumatic devices and those that use liquid unloading.

The U.S. rig count decreased by 27 to 1,893 rigs running by the end of last week. A total of 346 rigs were targeting natural gas (up 2 from the previous week) and 1,546 were targeting oil in the U.S. (29 less than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.).188rigs are running in the Williston Basin across MT, ND, and SD. 179 are in ND alone.

Not all rigs counted in our census are drilling for the Bakken, but it's close. The NDIC estimates 95% or more of activity in this region targets the Bakken and Three Forks formations.

Note: The NDIC reports 181 rigs are active in North Dakota. That figure is seven less than Baker Hughes reports in the Bakken area, and two more than the company reports in North Dakota. On any given week, a certain number of rigs are in route to the next well location or idle waiting to drill the next well. The NDIC notes that around 12 rigs are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

Bakken Oil & Gas Rigs

The number of oil rigs decreased by one to 186 rigs running by the end of the week . WTI oil prices decreased by ~$6.00 from the previous week, trading at $57.99/bbl on Friday afternoon. Williston Basin Sweet crude traded at $43.69/bbl on December 12th. The WTI-Brent stayed the same, settling at just under $4 by the end of last week.

One natural gas rig was recorded in the region. Natural gas futures (Henry Hub) were trading at $3.74/mmbtu by the end of last week. A little more than 10% of the production stream from the Bakken and Three Forks is attributable to natural gas and roughly half of that is NGLs.

McKenzie County continues to lead development with 66 rigs running. Mountrail, Williams and Dunn counties are the only other counties with more than 26 rigs running each. View the full list below under the Bakken Drilling by County section.

Activity is dominated by horizontal drilling:

172 rigs are drilling horizontal wells
12 rigs are drilling directional wells
3 rigs are drilling vertical wells

Bakken Oil & Gas News

Be sure to visit our Bakken Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates or sign up for alerts - Daily or Weekly Email Alerts

Bakken Drilling by County

What is the Rig Count?

Bakken Shale Rig Count Decreases by Three to 188

December 8, 2014 Kirk Eggleston

The Bakken-Three Forks rig count decreased by three t0 188 rigs running across our coverage area by the end of last week. The NDIC notes 190 rigs are active in North Dakota, but around 15 of those are in the process of moving in and rigging up. In recent Bakken news, analysts and industry leaders are worried about the effects low oil prices will have on the booming shale industry, including investment and drilling interests in the Bakken play. Since extracting shale oil is currently a more expensive process than conventional production methods, Bakken producers may be more vulnerable to lower crude prices.

The U.S. rig count decreased by 3 to 1,920 rigs running by the end of last week. A total of 344 rigs were targeting natural gas (flat from the previous week) and 1,575 were targeting oil in the U.S. (three less than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.).189rigs are running in the Williston Basin across MT, ND, and SD. 180 are in ND alone.

Not all rigs counted in our census are drilling for the Bakken, but it's close. The NDIC estimates 95% or more of activity in this region targets the Bakken and Three Forks formations.

Note: The NDIC reports 190 rigs are active in North Dakota. That figure is one more than Baker Hughes reports in the Bakken area, and ten more than the company reports in North Dakota. On any given week, a certain number of rigs are in route to the next well location or idle waiting to drill the next well. The NDIC notes that around 15 rigs are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

Bakken Oil & Gas Rigs

The number of oil rigs decreased by three to 187 rigs running by the end of the week . WTI oil prices decreased by ~$3.00 from the previous week, trading at $64.33/bbl on Monday morning. Williston Basin Sweet crude traded at $49.44/bbl on December 5th. The WTI-Brent stayed flat, settling at just under $4 by the end of last week.

One natural gas rig was recorded in the region. Natural gas futures (Henry Hub) were trading at $3.70/mmbtu by the end of last week. A little more than 10% of the production stream from the Bakken and Three Forks is attributable to natural gas and roughly half of that is NGLs.

McKenzie County continues to lead development with 67 rigs running. Mountrail, Williams and Dunn counties are the only other counties with more than 27 rigs running each. View the full list below under the Bakken Drilling by County section.

Activity is dominated by horizontal drilling:

172 rigs are drilling horizontal wells
13 rigs are drilling directional wells
3 rigs are drilling vertical wells

Bakken Oil & Gas News

Be sure to visit our Bakken Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates or sign up for alerts - Daily or Weekly Email Alerts

Bakken Drilling by County

What is the Rig Count?

Bakken Shale Rig Count Increases by Three to 191

December 1, 2014 Kirk Eggleston

The Bakken-Three Forks rig count increased by three t0 191 rigs running across our coverage area by the end of last week. The NDIC notes 185 rigs are active in North Dakota, but around 14 of those are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

In recent Bakken news, research consultancy IHS Energy reports most shale plays are economic and ~80% of potential drilling in 2015 would remain strong at WTI crude oil prices as low as $70 per barrel.

WTI traded at ~$67 today, a nearly 40% drop from June of 2014. As a result, Bakken operators, including Emerald Oil, Inc., have already announced plans to potentially scale back their drilling programs in 2015.

North Dakota’s Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) Director Lynn Helms updated lawmakers in October on the status of oil & gas development in the state. Helms said two factors could negatively impact oil production – lower oil prices and new flaring regulations.

The U.S. rig count increased by decreased by 12 to 1,917 rigs running by the end of last week. A total of 344 rigs were targeting natural gas (11 less than the previous week) and 1,572 were targeting oil in the U.S. (two less than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.).191 rigs are running in the Williston Basin across MT, ND, and SD. 180 are in ND alone.

Not all rigs counted in our census are drilling for the Bakken, but it's close. The NDIC estimates 95% or more of activity in this region targets the Bakken and Three Forks formations.

Note: The NDIC reports 185 rigs are active in North Dakota. That figure is six less than Baker Hughes reports in the Bakken area, and five more than the company reports in North Dakota. On any given week, a certain number of rigs are in route to the next well location or idle waiting to drill the next well. The NDIC notes that around 14 rigs are in the process of moving in and rigging up.

Bakken Oil & Gas Rigs

The number of oil rigs increased by three to 191 rigs running by the end of the week . WTI oil prices decreased by ~$10.00 from the previous week, trading at $67.48/bbl on Monday morning. Williston Basin Sweet crude traded at $49.69/bbl on November 28th. The WTI-Brent stayed flat, settling at just under $4 by the end of last week.

One natural gas rig was recorded in the region. Natural gas futures (Henry Hub) were trading at $4.05/mmbtu by the end of last week. A little more than 10% of the production stream from the Bakken and Three Forks is attributable to natural gas and roughly half of that is NGLs.

McKenzie County continues to lead development with 66 rigs running. Mountrail, Williams and Dunn counties are the only other counties with more than 27 rigs running each. View the full list below under the Bakken Drilling by County section.

Activity is dominated by horizontal drilling:

176 rigs are drilling horizontal wells
13 rigs are drilling directional wells
2 rigs are drilling vertical wells

Bakken Oil & Gas News

IHS: U.S. Shale Production Growth Will Slow, But Still Remain High

Be sure to visit our Bakken Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates or sign up for alerts - Daily or Weekly Email Alerts